Has anyone used Spark notes for lit discussion?

[Lux Et Veritas Academy]

I am thinking of using these as the basis for our lit discussion after my dd reads each book in 8th grade (Next year). Did you use them? Was it enough?;)

[Anne]

I taught an American Lit class several years ago. When preparing for each class, I used Spark notes, Cliffs notes, and a lot of internet resources. The Sparks & Cliff notes were very useful, and I was amazed at how many lesson plans I was able to find on the web.

 

Anne

[gardenschooler]

I always consult SparkNotes, but I find Cliffs Notes more detailed. I usually will get them both from the library and read them first, to map out a plan for exactly what I want to focus on with each book, and then look for free study guides/lesson plans on the web, read several critiques of the book, and piece it together from there. Of course, I read the book, too. :)(This is easier when it's a book I still remember!)

 

It's a lot of work, but it ends up being exactly what I want it to be, and I can determine exactly what we're going to focus on in each book. That way I can choose the literary elements and types of writing that dd needs to focus on, also, I can pace the reading and writing to be a good fit for her.

 

I've been trying to find something that does all the legwork for me for next year, but I've got a sinking feeling I won't be happy with anything. :001_huh: I do think it's easier to take something and add to it, rather than start from scratch. But I've done that with many, many books, and it went well.

[Michelle in MO]

for each lit. book we covered last year for Omnibus II. I relied mostly on Omnibus for the literary discussions, and then before the evaluations (tests) I'd have my girls re-read the summary and analysis portions of SparkNotes for each book. Having them spend some time in basic plot review was very helpful.

 

From what I've seen of SparkNotes, however, I believe they could be a tremendous benefit to aid your literature discussions, because they do include quite a few elements of literary analysis in each book. I also found for the Shakespeare that we studied that the Oxford School Shakespeare editions had some excellent notes that assisted with our Shakespeare studies.

 

Hope this helps! :)

[Chris in VA]

I used Spark Notes this year to supplement Sonlight 300, which assigned books "just to be read," and didn't include any commentary, questions, etc. They were invaluable. Cheap, too.

[dtsmamtj]

I do whenever I can.

 

 

T

[Lori D.]

I downloaded/printed the free SparkNotes from the website. We found the guides to be quite detailed in information:

 

- background info on the author/time period the work was written

- detailed summary of the work

- analysis of major characters

- analysis of major themes, symbols and motifs

- 4-8 discussion questions that could be used as possible writing assignments

 

 

In addition to Sparknotes, other possibly helpful free online guides:

 

Wikipedia (great background on authors, too!): http://www.wikipedia.org/

Cliffs Notes: http://www.cliffsnotes.com/WileyCDA/Section/id-305321.html

Glencoe: http://www.glencoe.com/sec/literature/litlibrary/

Pink Monkey: http://www.pinkmonkey.com/

Book Notes: http://www.freebooknotes.com/

Book Rags: http://www.bookrags.com/

 

 

I will say that it's *well worth* buying the lit. guides from Garlic Press publishers: http://garlicpress.com/cgi-bin/shop_gp.cgi?product=LITERATURE They don't have a lot of guides available (maybe 2 dozen), but they are quite meaty, with:

 

- detailed background on the author and time period the work was either written in or is to take place in

- in the case of "The Odyssey", detailed info on 4 different translators

- chapter by chapter summaries

- 8-12 great discussion questions per chapter

- teaching text on literary elements and examples from the work you are reading

- great writing assignment ideas

- additional resources and activity ideas

 

 

 

Enjoy your lit. journey! Warmest regards, Lori D.

[Melinda TX]

When I teach Lightning Lit at my co-op, I always use the Sparks Guide to add to our discussion. Sad truth - I am not a "deep thinker"; so having the extra guidance really benefited our class - I could "help" students to look a little deeper.

[MelodyInTx]

I am not a 'deep thinker' either so I appreciated the availability of the sparks notes.